Lux and the mysterious boy stood in front of the portal. It was a Level 3 False Portal. Not as strong as a real one, but close. It was its own kind of beast, just barely failing to become a true portal.
Lux jumped in.
His vision changed, and everything turned blue. The world spun, and it felt as if Lux was being dragged downward between two worlds. After a few minutes, the weightless feeling faded, and Lux found himself on cold stone again.
Next to him stood the mysterious boy.
Torches hung on the walls and burned brightly.
Well, great. Now he was trapped here with a stranger. Either Lux would be betrayed, or he would form a new friendship. Because one thing was clear: there were people who killed people they did not know, and in situations like this, could you even trust someone?
Lux looked around briefly.
A ruin. An abandoned ruin full of secrets and old stone walls. They were surrounded by stone. There was no way out of the stone room except by defeating all the enemies.
A portal was set up in waves. If you defeated every enemy, a boss would appear at the end. If you defeated the boss, you returned from the portal, and it destroyed itself.
In portals from level 1 to 7, it was usually a small world, or at lower levels, a small arena like this one. A small area could be created. It depended on the level. But from level 8 to 10, a whole small world could be created, and the enemy waves could rise to insane numbers.
Believe it or not, Lux had already been inside a level 9 portal once. After all, he had been born into one.
Lux turned toward the mysterious boy. He gave a slight smile.
"Um, say, how can I trust you?" Lux said, looking into the boy's eyes.
The boy raised a hand and grinned.
"I am Zack. And you?"
Lux did not really want to get to know anyone new, but if it helped in this situation, he forced a smile and said, "My name is Lux."
The moment Lux finished that sentence, time seemed to stop.
The stone room felt different.
Within seconds, the damp, cold air changed into warm and heavy air.
Out of nowhere, five small green creatures appeared. They wore torn leather armor covered in scratches and holes. Each of the five creatures held a wooden dagger.
They were goblins.
Simple, but common creatures.
Lux looked at Zack.
"Um, do you have weapons?" Lux asked quickly and nervously.
"Yes. Just one."
Zack held his hand forward and closed his eyes. Within seconds, a long katana appeared in his hand. It was black as coal and very long.
Zack immediately took a fighting stance.
He looked experienced.
But there was a problem.
Lux had no weapon.
And two goblins were already moving toward him.
Zack had separated himself and was fighting three goblins a little farther away. Lux glanced away from Zack's fight and focused on the two goblins running at him.
"Shit! How am I supposed to—"
Then an idea came to him.
"Of course. The attacks Throne gave me. What were they called again? Golden Slash? Okay, I will try it. But how?"
Lux remembered the magic training he had done with Elias. Back then, Lux had no energy, and therefore no attacks. Even so, he had watched Elias train for a long time.
"Okay, he concentrated and said the name!"
Lux watched the two little green creatures leap toward him. Their wooden daggers shot forward.
He quickly stepped back and dodged the attack.
Then Lux raised both hands and aimed his palms forward.
"Golden cut! Or slash, whatever!"
Suddenly, he felt tired.
But golden power gathered in his palm.
It shot forward and formed an X.
The two creatures could do nothing and were cleanly cut into many pieces.
Green blood splattered across the cold, wet stone floor.
Lux quickly looked over at Zack.
He was already standing in a corner and clapping.
"Wow, that was a really cool attack!"
Zack gave him a thumbs up.
Lux did not know why, but somehow Zack was strange.
Still nice.
Maybe the two of them could really become something like friends.
Lux thought that and grinned.
"Thanks. Now comes the boss, right?"
Zack returned the grin, and it grew wider.
"Yeah, I think that was all the enemy waves. Let us see what kind of boss appears. I am betting on a goblin golem. That one shows up often, haha."
Lux looked at Zack.
He paused for a moment, wondering how to ask.
Then he simply said, "Um, are you often in portals?"
Zack started grinning and scratched the back of his head.
"Well, this is my first portal, haha."
Lux stared.
"What? Never," burst out of Lux before he quickly added, "You look so skilled, like you have done this a thousand times. How did you defeat those goblins so fast, and where do you know all this from?"
Lux finished speaking, but the answer would have to wait.
Suddenly, green lightning flashed in the center of the room.
A powerful, large goblin without a weapon appeared in the middle of the room.
His muscles stood out.
He was better built than any bodybuilder in Lux's world.
"Man, that thing is going to smash us into paste," Zack muttered and looked at Lux.
Lux only nodded and swallowed.
"He looks strong!" Lux said and took a few steps back.
But Zack stayed where he was.
His katana rested at his side, and he wore a grin.
"Does not matter. We can do this!"
Zack sprinted forward like lightning.
The katana shot toward the boss, but the boss goblin's leg moved faster than Zack.
The leg slammed into Zack with full force.
The impact was enormous. The ground shattered, and stones flew in every direction.
Zack was knocked out cold by a single kick.
Lux stared at the boy lying on the ground.
"Shit!" Lux said as the boss sprinted straight toward him.